Many attempts have been made in the past to provide dog restraining or controlling means so designed that the animal may be instantly released when desired. All such prior proposed devices, however, have failed to be releasable by the use of only one hand. Many of the prior art devices enable the animal to be quickly released if the handler grasps one part of the restraint means, such as the collar, and then uses the other hand to manipulate the release button used on the latching arrangement of the restraint means. If the dog actively turns and twists about, as many of them do, the release of the animal becomes much more difficult, in view of the fact that the handler must struggle against the pulling of the dog in order to hold the components in a manner that makes release possible.
Another point to keep in mind is that the handler of the animal may, because of injury or infirmities due to age, have only one usable hand, and in such an instance, the release of a struggling animal from conventional latching means becomes almost impossible.
With regard to pertinent prior art devices, U.S. Pat. No. 244,312 discloses a fastening device which includes a pair of curved plates which are adapted to be releasably joined together by aligning a pair of projections on one with mating openings on the other. Upon turning the projections they cannot pass through the registered openings and lock the plates together. The ends of the collar are fixed to respective ends of each plate.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,097,070 discloses a rather complex fastener providing a protective locking device. While a channel like body member is disclosed, it is employed in a quite different manner than that taught by the Applicants, and does not function or cooperate with the other elements in a similar manner as disclosed in the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 272,036 is representative of many others which disclose the concept of providing means in which to hold and display owner information on the collar. However, like the above-noted patents it is believed that there is no showing or suggestion of the unique combination as taught by Applicants in the present invention.
None of these patents disclose a leash and animal collar combination of inexpensive construction that permits the handler to readily effect, by one hand, the immediate release of an animal that may be struggling to get free.